Submitted by Fox First at Ten on September 27th
**Official Press Release From Spokane County Sheriff's Office**
SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. - From early July of this summer to the present, the Spokane County Sheriff's Office has taken 44 copper wire theft reports in unincorporated Spokane County as well as Spokane Valley. These thefts have affected a wide variety of contractors, utility companies and cell phone companies.
The monetary loss from these thefts has not only cost these companies thousands of dollars, but has also affected customers from loss of services. The most recent thefts occurred sometime between September 18, 2012, and September 25th. Avista Utilities had copper wire thefts in the area of 25400 N. Crescent Road, Halliday and Mt. Spokane Road and Finley and Laurel Road totaling nearly $10,000.00 in these thefts alone. Avista Utilities stresses that not only are these thefts extremely dangerous, the essential repairs take resources away from serving their customers. These repairs also present a danger to the utility crews replacing the hardware. Anyone that witnesses any suspicious activity near any type of utility or cell phone towers is urged to call Crime Check at 509-456-2233.
